AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2623, 22 June 1904, Page 6

AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

Th-o following extract is from the Meat Trades Journal of May 31, a paper published in the interests of the Australian meat exporters in Sydney: — "'For many months we have been warning our cattle men that unless they were very careful Argentina would secure their one remaining market — viz., South Africa. Unfortunately this has come to pass. Cable advice has reached us that a contract has just been concluded with meat works in Argentina to supply the whole of- tlie South African requirements of beef for six mouths at 2d per 1b alongside wharf at Dane-town and Dm ban. This is bad news indexed, but it was only what was> to be expected."

An cwdeneo of the land boom. — Two years ago a settlor took up 2000 acres on Morton Mahis E=tate, paying £4- 5s for the property. Within the past few days the investor has disposed of 1500 acres, in two farms, at £9 10s and £10 per acre respectn ely. The remaining 500 acres is by no means the worst of the original 2000-acre block. After making due allowance for improvements, a handsome surplus is available for the vendor.— Wynd'ham Farmer.

The Chatham Islands torrespodent of the Christchurch Press, writing on June 6, states that a very boisterous autumn has been experienced. The equinoxial gales commenced on March 15, and are still blowing. The country is swamped out, feed for stock is very scarce, and lungworm is prevalent. Most of the sheep-owners have already lost as many hoggets as is usually the case by Ist September, and it is feai-ed that the islanders are going to have a very hard time of it this winter.

The following lines of grain and produce were shipped from Lybtelton during the week ended Friday: — For the United Kingdom—4s9s sacks -wheat, 5877 do oats, 2071 do peas, 1764- do beans, 913 do seed, 555 do bran, 125 bags potatoes; for Australia. — 10 sacks malt, 78 do seed, 617 do potatoes; for Fiji— loo sacks flour, 25 do oats, 5 do pea=;, 203 do potatoes, 12 do onions; coaotwise — 1953 sacks wheat, 1002 do and 1543 ba.gs flour, 410 sacks oat«, 62 do meal, 175 do harley, 153 do malt. 242 ido bran, 60 do tharps, 240 <lo pollard, 5087 do chaff, 25 do peas, 26 do beans, 5753 do potatoes, 14 do, 1 bag. and 91 gimmes onions, 104- sacks c oed, 204- bales hay. 64- do straw.

Air J. O'Leary, a well-known settler in Wanganui, leaves the colony with his wife and family by the Corinthic on the 23rd inst., with the intention of taking up land in Ireland, his native country. He says that h& can get land there cheaper, and, with hia colonial ■experience, can make more money than in New Zealand.

K-sine fever hay broken out again it Bainmlale, Victoria. One fanner lost 500 piy;? in a fortnight, representing a. ca«h outlay of nearly £1500. A settler cf Wairarapa, who has lost a number of cows through the reekle-ps use of pea-rifles, has ported up a notice as follows: "From January to December will be a close season for cows."

A Manawatu settler has sok' his farm close to FeiMing at £35 an acre. Jr. m ,-• of the g.-< A !>-? '" '\i'.i c d KfarmoK consequent upon rust in grain the Auckland Executive of the New Zealand Farmers' Union has written to the Minister of Agriculture urging him to get experiments made on the Government experimental farm in the Waikato in the hope cf discovering some remedy. The formation of a Farmers' Mutual Fire Insurance Association w Auckland is now

assured. Tho necessary preliminary stejjg have been taken, and 132 farmers have agreed to effect insurances to tho amount of £15,000. The requirements of the act are 100 members and £40,000 worth of insurance*. An application has been made to tho Govc-inor-in-Council for a warrant authorising the association to carry on firo insurance business.

On the southern heights of the Otakarama R;:ngc, -eastward from Gore, some splendid crops of oais wore threshed this season. A field on ?.lr Ryan's farm, situated on the uunmit of a lofty hill, returned 109 bushels to the acre. On Stanley Hill Farm (Messrs Gardinei\), the tally was 97 buahcls to the acre

The Kawhai Settlor mentions r.n instance of a settler journeying from Kinohaku to Ohapu, where, tho bought a hcr?o in the yards, and on returning with (he an.mal to his section, a distance of nearly 100 miles, h-o a:certain-cd that a sottle-r v.ithin three, miles of his farm Iml taken the horse to the yards to sell. Another instance is recorded from the same district of 60 head of cattle being take-iv to Waikato to sell which 6omo weeks afterwards arrived back iv charge of ihe owner of the adjoining section to the- settler who had sold them!

The People's Journal states that a single Kiciorado potato was recently sold to a wellkiiown Scotch firm of potato merchants for £30.

I'j is ass-orted that some large butter buyers intend to buy next seaman "with recourse." This will mean considerable uncertainty in the prices to be given for milk, and suppliers and, following on" them, tradesmen, may have rather an anxious time.

The systematic laying of poison throughout, the Kowai district, Canterbury, on the 9th insi". resulted in. the- destruction of thousands of small birds. Along the watercourses on some farms they were found lying dead by the hundred. At a Canterbury country saleyard a few days ago the vendor of a line of sheep, before offering them, drafted a number of culls from amongst them, and after the line had been gold returned theso inferior sheep to the society of their former companions. The transaction, however, was observed, and the buyer d&mande-d and obtained a substantial allowance as the only condition on which he would accept the Hne.

An apparatus in use in Germany for the purification of milk by ozonisation (says tho Scientific American) is so constructed, that tho milk contained in a vessel flows thence in a thin stream into another vessel placed below. An electric circuit is so arranged that sparking is caused through the* stream or near it. The ozone which is thereby engendered from the oxygen of the air is said to \>e sufficient to kill all microorganisms contained in tho milk. No fewer 'than 71 head of North Island bullocks were offered at the Addington saleyard 1 : on Wednesday, and this large outside supply caused a drop in prices. Seeing that beef is new costing less than 3d per 1b in the sa-levards, the Christchuieli butchers are considering the question of lowering theretail price. A "W inton farmer t'h-e other day disposed of a lin-e of fat lambs for the freezer at 18s Bd.

There is now a large demand for Australian fruit on the Continent, and of the 7000 cases recently landed by the It.M.S. Orotava at least 2500 have been despatched to foreign porK France, Germany, Russia, Holland, Denmark, and Sweden have all taken apples, and the demand from these countries is likely to increase. Large shipments of grain are moving off from Timaru just now. Last week (reports the Herald cf the 15th inst.) the Canterbury Farmers' Co-operative Association sent away 6000 sacks of Danish oats by the Buteshire for South Africa and 4000 sacks of wheat and oats for Ihe United Kingdom by the Karamca. This week the association is sending away between 16,000 and 17.000 sacks of wheat and oats per Hawke's Bay and Matntua. Oihor merchants have lately sent and are sending this week large quantities also. The quantity cf prime grain now hold here is being almost daily reduced, and the market generally has a firmingtendency. »

The Agricultural Department has placed 20 goats of the common breed and an .Angora male goat on Motuara Island, at zhe entrance to Queen Charlotte Sound, with the object of obtaining a cross between the two varieties, remarks the Wellington Post. A correspondent i\ rites expressing surprise that goats are to be reared on an island which" he understood had been reserved on. historical grounds connected with Captain Cook's visit to New Zealand. He presumes that a caretaker will be appointed, and that; the Government will go to the expense of erecting a residence for him. In the correspondent's opinion, the goats can verywell be allowed to look after themselves. The Agricultural Department states that the cost of breeding goats on the island will beexceedingly small, as a Maori resident has agreed to look after ttie animate for a slight gratuity. Large entries of fat sheep continue to be the order of the day at Addington. It is reported that, thanks to the favourable autumn, thero are good supplies of both" sheep and lambs to Come forward for some time yet. The anticipation, founded on the state of the flocks two or three months ago. that supplies would run out by the end of May has decidedly not been realised.— Lytteltcm Times. Mr D. D. Hyde, Government poultry expert, reporfs that tlio poultry industry continues to cxoanrl in Otago, Canterbury, and Westland Reports which ho has received show that there is still an unlimited market in South Africa for dressed poultry, and large shipments continue to be made from this colony. There is also a good demand in Cape Colony and the Transvaal for eggs, but owing to the shipping conditions not being considered attractive enough very few lota arc being sent from New Zealand.

The monthly meeting df the committee of the Timaru A. and P. Association took place o:i the 11th inst.. Mr D. Grant (president) in the chair. The Chairman reported that on Tuesday last the Ground Committee met and inspected the cattle yards. They decided upon certain minor improvements, such as strengthening existing parts, buc recommended that no great expe-n^ be trono to in this direction, berv; ,■> ;t v,-^ pr .Bailie i»-.(. at m distant date an endeavour would be made to erecfc

The special Gardbh Fertiliser made up brr Nimmo and Blaib will be found to give excellent results when used for Flowers and Vegetables ; also for Pot Plants, in and out of greenhouse. It is put up in 71b bags, at la 6# each. Ask your storekeeper for ifc.

cattle stalls. — The committee then went " seriatim through the proofe of the pro- ■ gramme for next show, as drawn up by the Special Sub-committee. - The committee made no recommendation as to the rules of the show, but they were held over for consideration by the General Committee till further arrangements for the show hare been completed. Non-members' entry fees were reduced to 7s 6d for sheep. Considerable discussion took place over the various items, and ia numerous ways the old catalogue was improved upon. A Ryelands class is included. In the fat sheep classes, instead of limiting the maximum weight of freezers, the weights will this year be left unrestricted. With regard to the Christchurch Meat Company's prizes, given for sheep of certain size, to be killed and valued by the company, the Chairman said the company had been asked to allow the sheep to be killed and valued by expert butchers in Christchurch instead of judging them merely upon the company's grading. Member* considered that the sheep should be judged in this respect upon the general utility of the mutton, not upon the mere current grading prices and the value of tho skins and fat. The committee accepted the company's prize with thanks, asking, however, that the minimum weight of sheep be raised. rWhere six or more entries are put in in^the draught and light horse classes, a third prize will be given. The committee recom- j mended the abolition of the tendem-driving ! and stock-driving competitions, and the j holding of all the other driving competitions on the second day instead of the first, as otherwise they are a failure. The advisability of this alteration was dwelt upon for ; some time by Mr Hay, who said it was j necessary to know finally whether the show j ■wonld be held in two days or not, or ■ ■whether all the " amusements " should go into one day. Some discussion took place, and the President suggested that a special meeting should be held later on, when the members had had time to consider the . matter better. It was accordingly agreed to < hold a special meeting on Saturday, 25th j inst., to decide on the division of the pro- j gramme over the two days. — Mr Maze pro- i posed that 15 new members be elected to ■the association, and they were all accepted. The draft of nearly 500 lambs sent to Addington last week (saya the "Lyttelton Times of the 15th inst.) by Mr J. Maddison, of ; Norwood, was one of the best large lines . that have ever been in tEe market. Mr i tWanliss, an Old Country farmer and grazier j of great experience, pronounced them as 1 equal to any which could be 6een in the regular way at an English market. He said the top pen, which fetched 22s 9d, would have made 45s to 50s in England. He also highly praised Mr T. Powell's (Fernside) pen, whicH sold at 235. The directors of the British-New Zealand Meat Company hope to proceed to business in about three months' time. Mr H. F. Recce, who is to represent the company at Home, will arrive in London in a few days, and Mr Smethurst, the inventor of the defroster, has gone to Australia, and, after transacting some of the company's business there, will proceed to London to assist Mr Recce. The directors are quite confident of success. Some months ago the Government inspector •prosecuted certain land-owners in Hawke's Bay on account of the presence of Californian. thistle on their lands. Doubts were then expressed by some of the defendants as to the identity of the thistle, and the belief was also expressed that even if the plant were the true Californian thistle it did not produce fertile seed. Recently Mr T. Kirk. Government biologist, visited the district and inspected the properties, with a view to settling the disputed points. There was not, he found, the slightest doubt as to the identity of the thistle, of which there were several patches of considerable extent, and although at the time of the visit a large proportion of tlie heads did not contain fertile seed, yet every eighth or ninth head wa3 found to contain several exceptionally well-developed seeds, the exceptional development being probably due j to the fact that they had obtained the nourishment which would in the ordinary course have gone to assist the othere had they been fertilised. The New Zealand Institute cf Dairy Secretaries has fixed ita annual meeting for June 21 afc Paimerston North. A debate is to be held, after transaction of ordinary businesg, on two resolutions moved by Mr I A. S. Biss, of Wellington:— (l) That the ■ tendency in New Zealand is to undercapitalise dairy companies ; (2) that the drrectors of dairy companies should not ho suppliers. Tho institute has offered a gold medal for a prize essay on " The Essential Points for the Successful Management of a Co-operative Dairy Company." The length of the essay is not to exceed 20 folios, and tho points to be dealt with are as follows: — Duties, responsibilities, and qualifications of directors : duties, responsibilities, and qualifications of eecvotary; duties, responsibili- j fcies, and rpalificationg of manager; duties, | responsibilities, and qualifications of buttpvmaker; dufies, responsibilities, and qualifications of creamery manager ; how and where economies can be effected ; in what direction and how cheeks should bo instituted to guard against loss by fraud or careles_sness; in what direction and how far ths

suppliers are responsible for the success of their company. Professor) Thomas 'Shaw writes as follows in the American Sheep Breeder on "Sheep as Weed-destroyers on Western Farms": — , The number of weeds that a< small band of ; sheep will turn into mutton in a year is j very great. Weeds can never be pu* to a better use. The man who eats the mutton could never tell whether it has been made from weeds or clover. This, at least, will hold Hi-uo in nearly all inj stances. The one difficulty to be encoun- ; tered is the wa"t of fencing. This, how- : ever, will apply to the keeping of any ; kind of live stock. It is a difficulty that must 'be faced and overcome, for live stock • must' soon be introduced on all the farms I of th© prairie in order to farm, them with . a view to maintaining their productiveness. { While sheep are thus destroying weeds and ; consuming' food that in their absence would : go to waste, they are performing another 1 beneficent work — tha* is, the fertilisation !of the land. They accomplish this by ; turning the food consumed into fertility ' and distributing the same on the land in a readily-available form. It may be J asked, Would not the vegetable j matter enrich the land as much as if not 1 eaten? The. answer is, Not necessarily. I Much would dependl on whether it was ' buried in the soil or not before it shrivelled lin decay. Then there is the further fea- • ture to be noticed of the excellent health I which the sheep are pretty certain to enjoy when they are thus grazed. The variety thus constantly furnished in the food is eminently conducive to such an end. The ; liberty H'hus enjoyed also acts in the same ! direction. Hence the prqportion of losses lia likely to be small. The. sheep will also j keep in prime, condition when the band is . I not large. A large ifloola relatively is not ' [ intended for such conditions. j I Sevei-al lots of extra prime heavy weight ; . wethers -were offered at the Addington ' saleyards la&b week, including some show ! sheep For Mr W. B. Clarkson, sen., i i Swinnybeek, six Border Leicester cross ] wethers were sold at 57s 6d to Messrs j Langdon and Steele, and) five Shropshire ! cross wethers at 50s to the Christchurch ] Meat Company. Mr J. Addinell, Cust, also ! sold wethers .at 32s 6d| to 34s 6d; Mr ■ George Rutherford, Dalethorpe, wethers ! ; and ewes at 27s .to 325, and Mr W. W. I I M'Olelland, Kimberley, wethers up to 27s 1 6d. A splendid line of 794 two and four- | tooth, halfbred' wethers from the Culverden Estate, bred at Green Hills and Hawkswood, were sold at 21s lOd to Mr A. Stark for export. — Press. The price of beef "on the hoof" was the subject of long and at .times animated discussion at Addington Yard's yesterday (says last Thursday's Lyttelton Times). Butchers asserted that their pvirebase-3 of good to prime beef cost them, .at the rate of 22s 6d for North Island end 24s to 25s for local cattle per 1001b ; while the vendors of the 1 North Island cattle estimated that they j realised from 17s to 19s per 1001b, and local ; light-weight heife.rs were declared to have ! been sold below £1, p©r 1001b. The higher estimates wore those of butchers who buy j small lines of very prime cattle, which no j doubt _ approached the prices named ; but j the wide difference in the estimated 1 price of ordinary and North Island lines is not < easily explained, even allowing that the I latter were very ''hollow" after a long and j rough sea voyage, rendering it difficult to form an accurate estimate of their weight. [ The price of beef, indeed, is a burning question just now. The New South Wales Minister for Agriculture has received a report from Mr j Lance, commercial agent in London, on ■the meat trade of 1903, in which the following passage appears: — "I have come to the conclusion that as long as we treat the frozen mutton industry merely as a means of disposing of the intermittent surplus of (merino flocks, We shall have to be content with an inferior place in .the market ; and that to ensure complete success, therefore, our pastoralists must go in for moro careful cross-breeding, and the production ' of a clos-s of sheep and lamias similar to New Zealand. That colony has achieved' ! an entirely enviable reputation upon this ' market. The description is suitable to the j tastes of the people, and the evenness of j quality and' regularity of supply enable it , to maintain and improve its position." j At a special meeting of the Christchurch Master Butchers' Union, held en Thursday ' last, the. drop, in tha price of fat cattle was corjsid'ered. The opinion, was geneially expiessed that 'the glut was only temporary, and largely due to tho influx of North Island cattle. After some discussion it wa> agreed that should the present market price continue a reduction in the retail price of beef would probably take place. The meet- ■ ing was a representative one, and Mr W. Owen occupied the chair. 1 The Christchurch Dairymen's Association mot last wedk 'to consider proposed amendments in the Dairy Act. Mr J. Tupham, the president, was in the chair, and there was a large attendance of dairymen. Messrs T. H. Davey, O. Lewis, A. W. Rutherford, and 1 W. W. Tanner, members of the Hoifg of Representatives, and the Hon. J. M. Twomey, M.L.C., were present. Mr J. Longton, of the Stock Department, aho attended, and supplied information. The

Chairman said he hoped the members would help the association to secure the following amendments, which would be brought 1 before Parliament by means of a petition : { "(1) That the maximum value of all coni d'emned cattle should: too £10 a head', and ' that the owner of such cattle should get ' two-thirds of tho value. (2) That the Go- . vernment should do away with the present ! system — that was, the general use of the tuberculin test, and subatityne for it the clinical examination of dairy herds and dairy cattle at all public sales. (3) That Clause 5 (375) of the Dairy Act of 189E should be abolished', and that any dispute affecting dairymen should be referred to a,n Arbitration Court. (4) That Clause 8 (3), No. 3.1, of the Stock Amendment Act of 1898, which read : — 'In the case of cattle, if less than one 3*ear or more than eight years when •condemned,' should be altered to — 'In the case of cattle, if less than three months or more than 12 years when condemned.' " Several members of the association spoke on the points put forward. Mr Davey said that he would do anything he could to assist the association in obtaining anything that wa9 fair and feasible. Mr Lewis said that ifc was only fair ithat dairymen should receive an increased price for cows condemned. Mr Witty had requested him to say that he would also work with the other members. Mr Rutherford eaidi that it was a question of the- Government giving substantial compensation, cr up would' go the price of milk. He would go as far as paying the full value, but if the association was satisfied! with two-thirds, he would leave it at that. It all came back to the fact that dairymen must live. Mr Tanner said he thought that tho maximum value of condemned cattle should bo . increased. The members of Parliament, he thought, were agreed on that. After much j desultory discussion had 1 taken place, the j chairman thanked the members of Parlia1 menfc for their attendance, j Although the export returns for May • (says tho New Zealand Times) showed a I considerable decline in {he shipments of butter and cheese from this colony for the j month as compared with the corresponding I period last year, the- lower figures must ' not be. taken as indicating a smaller output. • In May of 1903 large quantities of produce, J held in the stores for some time awaiting 1 a rise in the Home market, were shipped, whereas the snipments from January to April this year have been very large and! very regular. At the present time about 14,000 cases of butter are stored in Wel- ; lington: some quantities are also held at Patea andi Auckland, though in tho South Island very little hutter has been, placed in the cold stores. The bill to be introduced by the Minister of Lands restoring 'the homestead system has been framed mainly on the lines of the previous act, differing from it in only a few details. The bill is now in the hands of the printers. The homestead sysiem provides for the setting apart of blocks of niral lands and their subdivision into individual holdings varying in area from 50 'to 75 acres, according to quality. One main feature in the system, as it existed previously, was that an advance of £20 towards the construction of a house could' ba obtained from the Government, and £2 10s per acre for bush-felling or gras?ing up to an area of 20 acres. It was a form of land settlement open to those practically without capital.